Union Bank Building, National historic site in Exchange District, Canada
The Union Bank Building is an 11-storey structure (including mezzanine) in palazzo style, rising 47.58 metres at the corner of Main Street and William Avenue in Winnipeg. Its steel skeleton supports a light brick and terracotta curtain wall, and the ground-floor banking hall features marble Ionic columns and a coffered ceiling. It now houses the Paterson GlobalFoods Institute, with classrooms, kitchens, restaurants and student residences.
The structure was built in 1904 and marked the moment when Winnipeg established itself as a financial center, serving as the headquarters of Union Bank. It is recognized as Canada's first skyscraper and represents the economic expansion of the western region during that era.
The building stands in the Exchange District, where it reflects how Winnipeg grew as a trading and financial hub in the early 1900s. It shows how banks displayed their importance and success through the way they built.
The building stands at the corner of Main Street and William Avenue in Winnipeg's Exchange District, with the single-storey 1921 annex on its south side. It is now the Paterson GlobalFoods Institute of Red River College Polytechnic, housing classrooms, kitchens, two restaurants on the lower floors and student residences above, so the tower itself is not open for public tours.
The building was constructed using concrete caissons, a technique borrowed from bridge building that helped stabilize the foundation in muddy ground. This approach was innovative for its time and allowed the structure to stand firm on unsuitable soil.
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